OK, so my girlfriend is a gamer (woot woot!) and her all-time favorite thing about games is character-creation. Her dream game would be one where you create all the characters and then have sort of a God complex and control them. Right now she's playing Sims 3 and really likes it, but she'd like to be able to create multiple characters and have them interact with each other.

I've heard of Creatures and Spore but don't know much about them? Are of either of those similar to that?

If not, do you have any other suggestions for a game like that? Also she LOVED the character-creation in Aion, but RPG's aren't her favorite (and the characters in-game didn't look like they did on the creation screen.)

Thanks!

Neverwinter Nights 2 has really complex character generation, and the faces you give your main character look the same in game. I know it's an RPG, but, most games that have Character Generation are RPG's I'm afraid. I have spent literally days just making characters for NWN2 until I got one I really liked. It takes a lot of studying of the rules and stuff, but for me that was half the fun.

However, I get a feeling that's not what you probably want. In that case, off the top of my head, the only non-RPG game I can think of that I have created characters in lately is Crusader Kings 2 with the Ruler designer DLC. With that game you can create the founder of your dynasty (Man or Woman) give them traits like gluttony and chastity, create a family 'shield' and play for hundreds of years with your dynasty. It's really a fun game and I recommend it.

RIght now nothing else character-generationy is coming to mind. Maybe she would like some adventure games like The Book of Unwritten Tales, Kings Quest or somesuch, great fun there. Anyways, good luck. ;)

According to the reviews, Creatures and Spore are good games but the "characters" you control aren't humans.

Alternatives to The Sims: Kudos 2 and Virtual Families.

I never played but maybe Space Colony? Is like a The Sims on Space... ;p
(and looks pretty good)

Spore would be an excellent choice for her.

Go for NWN (1 or 2).
Let her have her fun creating the characters & then you play the game....

stupid joke, forget it

To give it a sideways view...

Zafehouse: Diaries.

Might not be to everyone's tastes, but I've spent the last hour putting in custom survivors modelled on, among others: Ronnie Biggs, Harpo Marx, Frankie Howerd, Vlad Tepes and Mrs Mills. I think there's may be some mileage in this.

I've played Spore and it's an excellent game. At least the first part of it, then it turns a bit boring and repetitive. You start as a single cell, and have to evolve to form a complete being. After that with the creatures you've created you have to form a tribe, that then transforms into a modern civilization. The final stage would be space colonization. Throughout the game you can customize almost everything, specially the creatures you create. But like they said in an early post, you don't play with humans. Maybe she like's it anyway. The game was developed by Maxis, same as the sims franchise.

Here's the trailer of the game: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVH9Q8M8eaQ

Here are some games to consider that aren't of the genre you referenced:
1. Project Eden that was just released. This is something that you can play together co-op and the social aspect of that can sometimes overcome a normal aversion to a particular genre. The game is basically a cooperative adventure stye with puzzle-solving and some clunky combat. The good of it definitely outweighs the somewhat clunky combat. My wife is a picky type gamer that only plays certain things and this was one of the few that she really took to.

2. Still Life has an engaging story, especially from a female perspective. My wife was shoulder-surfing while I was playing it on the 1st xbox when it originally came out and before I could get a third of the way through the game she stole the controller from me and finished it. The only other adventure game that she took to like that was Grim Fandango that I recall.

TL;DR: There's a good chance that chicks will dig Project Eden and Still Life. :)

Diablo 2 is also a great choice, the only RPG I know that had a HUGE female presence . Majesty would probably be to her liking as well.

It's not fitting to your criteria, but perhaps you should expand her horizons. Let her play the Monkey Island games, or Psychonauts. Just because she likes "some" games doesn't mean there's not more for her to discover.

Failing that, set her on Syberia. Definite chick flic value in that one.

If character creating and interactions are important, then Spore is a bad choice. You do not create a character as such, but a race depending on the choices you make during the game. Neither are there any character interactions (well... not in the direct sense...). It is an innovative strategy game, which promises much more than it actually delivers.

I would not get Spore for her.

URU is a non-RPG game that allows you to customize your player character, male or female, and dress him or her up, but when you're done with that, it's like any other puzzle adventure, nothing like Sims.

Maybe she would like real "role-playing" with other players on a NWN server that has lots of hacks for character customization?

Princess Maker 2

It's a bit guy oriented, but maybe she likes it.